Charlie Byrd
Charlie Byrd | |
---|---|
![]() Charlie Byrd performing with his trio in July 1997 | |
Background information | |
Birth name | Charlie Lee Byrd |
Born | Suffolk, Virginia, U.S. | September 16, 1925
Origin | Washington, D.C. |
Died | December 2, 1999 Annapolis, Maryland, U.S. | (aged 74)
Genres | Bossa nova, Latin jazz, swing |
Occupation(s) | Musician |
Instrument(s) | Guitar |
Years active | 1957–1999 |
Labels | Savoy, Riverside, Columbia, Concord Jazz |
Formerly of | Cal Tjader, Keter Betts, Stan Getz, Herb Ellis, Barney Kessel, Annapolis Brass Quintet |
Charlie Lee Byrd (September 16, 1925 – December 2, 1999) was an American jazz guitarist. Byrd was best known for his association with Brazilian music, especially bossa nova. In 1962, he collaborated with Stan Getz on the album Jazz Samba, a recording which brought bossa nova into the mainstream of North American music.
Byrd played fingerstyle on a classical guitar.
Early life
Charlie Byrd was born in 1925 in
After the war, Byrd returned to the United States and studied composition and
Byrd's earliest and greatest influence was the gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt, whom he saw perform in Paris.[1][2][3]
Career
In 1957, Byrd met
Byrd was introduced to Brazilian music by
Getz convinced Creed Taylor at Verve Records to produce the album. Taylor and Byrd assembled a group of musicians they knew. These early sessions did not turn out to either man's liking, so Byrd gathered a group of musicians that had been to Brazil with him previously and practiced with them in Washington, D.C., until he felt they were ready to record. The group included his brother Gene ("Joe") Byrd, as well as Keter Betts, Bill Reichenbach and Buddy Deppenschmidt. Reichenbach and Deppenschmidt were drummers, and the combination made it easier to achieve samba rhythm. Finally the group was deemed ready and Getz and Taylor arrived in Washington, D.C., on February 13, 1962. They recorded in a building adjacent to All Souls Unitarian Church because of the building's excellent acoustics.[5]
Jazz Samba was released in April 1962, and by September it had entered the Billboard pop album chart. By March of the following year the album had moved to number one. The term "bossa nova" was not used until later. The album remained on the charts for seventy weeks, and Getz soon beat John Coltrane in a DownBeat poll. One of the album's most popular tunes was a Jobim hit, titled "Desafinado".[5]
Following the success of Jazz Samba, Byrd signed with Riverside Records, which reissued six of his albums recorded for the small Offbeat label, a subsidiary of Washington Records.[7]
On March 13, 14, 15, 16, 1963, Byrd travelled two hours south of Washington, DC to the University of Virginia in Charlottesville to provide music for an original musical, Lament For Guitar and Two Lovers. The play was by Lee Devin of the UVa drama department, with music for 10-piece ensemble by Sidney Hodkinson of the UVa music department. Two nights later on March 18, the Byrd trio played a concert featuring "Lament for Guitar and Two Lovers" at Cabell Hall, the university's acoustic auditorium.[8] The solo dancer for the concert was Jocelyn Anker Moss.
In 1963, Byrd toured Europe with
In 1973, Byrd moved to Annapolis, Maryland, and in September of that year he recorded an album with Cal Tjader titled Tambú, the only recording the two would make together.[12] That same year, Byrd joined guitarists Herb Ellis and Barney Kessel and formed the Great Guitars group, which also included drummer Johnny Rae.[12][13] Byrd collaborated with Venezuelan pianist and composer Aldemaro Romero on the album Onda Nueva/The New Wave.
From 1980 through 1996, he released several of his arrangements to the jazz and classical guitar community through Guitarist's Forum (gfmusic.com), including Charlie Byrd's Christmas Guitar Solos, Mozart: Seven Waltzes For Classical Guitar, and The Charlie Byrd Library featuring the music of George Gershwin and Irving Berlin. He also collaborated with the Annapolis Brass Quintet in the late 1980s, appearing with them in over 50 concerts across the United States and releasing two albums.
Byrd played for several years at a jazz club in Silver Spring, Maryland, called The Showboat II which was owned and managed by his manager, Peter Lambros. He was also home-based at the King of France Tavern nightclub at the Maryland Inn in Annapolis from 1973 until his death in 1999. In 1992, the book Jazz Cooks—by Bob Young and Al Stankus—was published by Stewart, Tabori & Chang, a compilation of recipes that include a few recipes from Byrd.[14] He also authored the 1973 publication Charlie Byrd's Melodic Method for Guitar.
Personal life
Byrd was married 3 times. His first wife was singer Virginia "Ginny" Marie Byrd, who performed vocals on a number of his early recordings[15] and who died in 1974. They had two children: Carol M. Rose and Jeffrey. Jeffrey, died in 1973 after a car accident. His second marriage to Maggie Byrd ended in divorce; they had one daughter, Charlotte E. Byrd.[16]
At the time of his death, Byrd had been married to Rebecca Byrd, of Annapolis, for one year. He was survived by his wife, his daughters from his first and second marriage, two brothers: Jack R. Byrd of Suffolk, Va., and Gene H. "Joe" Byrd of Edgewater, and a granddaughter.[16]
He loved
Death
Charlie Byrd died of lung cancer on December 2, 1999, at his home in Annapolis, Maryland, at the age of 74.[17]
Awards
- 1999 – Knighted by the government of Brazil as a Knight of the Rio Branco
- 1997 – deemed a "Maryland Art Treasure" by the Community Arts Alliance of Maryland
Discography
As leader
Recorded | Title | Label | Released | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1957 | Jazz Recital | Savoy | 1957 | |
1957 | Blues for Night People | Savoy | 1957 | |
Everybody's Doin' the Bossa Nova | Riverside | 1960 | ||
1960 | Four Suites by Ludovico Roncalli | Washington Records | 1960 | |
1962 | Latin Impressions | Riverside | 1962 | |
1962 | Jazz Samba | Verve | 1962 | Co-led with Stan Getz |
1960 | Mr. Guitar | Riverside | 1962 | Originally issued as Jazz at the Showboat, Vol. 3 (Offbeat) |
1962 | Bossa Nova Pelos Passaros | Riverside | 1962 | |
1958 | Byrd's Word! | Riverside | 1962 | Originally issued as Jazz at the Showboat (Offbeat) |
1960 | The Guitar Artistry of Charlie Byrd | Riverside | 1963 | Originally issued as Charlie's Choice (Offbeat) |
1961 | Charlie Byrd at the Village Vanguard | Riverside | 1963 | Originally issued on Offbeat |
1961 | Blues Sonata | Riverside | 1963 | Originally issued on Offbeat |
1963 | Once More! Charlie Byrd's Bossa Nova | Riverside | 1963 | |
1963 | Byrd at the Gate | Riverside | 1963 | |
1959 | Byrd in the Wind | Riverside | 1963 | Originally issued on Offbeat |
1964 | Byrd Song | Riverside | 1964 | |
1963 | Guitar/Guitar | Columbia | 1965 | Co-led with Herb Ellis |
1965 | Travellin' Man | Columbia | 1965 | |
1965 | Brazilian Byrd | Columbia | 1965 | |
Byrdland | Columbia | 1966 | ||
1965 | The Touch of Gold | Columbia | 1966 | |
1966 | Christmas Carols for Solo Guitar | Columbia | 1966 | |
1967 | Hollywood Byrd | Columbia | 1967 | |
1965 | Solo Flight | Riverside | 1967 | |
1967 | More Brazilian Byrd | Columbia | 1967 | |
1967 | Sketches of Brazil: The Music of Villa-Lobos | Columbia | 1968 | |
1968 | Hit Trip | Columbia | 1968 | |
1968 | Delicately | Columbia | 1968 | |
The Great Byrd | Columbia | 1968 | ||
1969 | Aquarius | Columbia | 1969 | |
Let Go | Columbia | 1969 | ||
Let It Be | Columbia | 1970 | ||
1971 | For All We Know | Columbia | 1971 | |
1971 | The Stroke of Genius | Columbia | 1971 | |
Onda Nueva | Columbia | 1972 | Co-led with Aldemaro Romero | |
1973 | Crystal Silence | Fantasy | 1973 | |
1973 | Tambu | Fantasy | 1974 | Co-led with Cal Tjader |
1974 | Byrd by the Sea | Fantasy | 1974 | |
1975 | Great Guitars | Concord Jazz | 1975 | Co-led with Barney Kessel, Herb Ellis |
1975 | Top Hat | Fantasy | 1975 | |
1976 | Charlie Byrd Swings Downtown | Improv | 1976 | |
1976 | Great Guitars 2 | Concord Jazz | 1976 | Co-led with Barney Kessel, Herb Ellis |
1977 | Charlie Byrd | Crystal Clear Records | 1977 | |
1977 | Encores At The Maryland Inn | SRI | 1977 | |
1979 | Blue Byrd | Concord Jazz | 1979 | |
Sugarloaf Suite | Concord Jazz | 1979 | ||
Great Guitars at the Winery | Concord Jazz | 1980 | Co-led with Barney Kessel, Herb Ellis | |
Brazilian Soul | Concord Jazz | 1981 | Co-led with Laurindo Almeida | |
1981 | Brazilville | Concord Jazz | 1982 | Co-led with Bud Shank |
1982 | The Charlie Byrd Christmas Album | Concord Jazz | 1982 | |
1984 | Isn't It Romantic | Concord Jazz | 1984 | |
1985 | Tango | Concord | 1985 | Co-led with Laurindo Almeida |
1986 | Byrd and Brass | Concord Jazz | 1986 | Co-led with Annapolis Brass Quintet |
1988 | It's a Wonderful World | 1988 | ||
Music of the Brazilian Masters | Concord | 1989 | Co-led with Laurindo Almeida, Carlos Barbosa-Lima | |
1992 | The Washington Guitar Quintet | Concord Jazz | 1992 | |
1994 | Moments Like This | Concord | 1994 | |
1993 | Aquarelle | Concord | 1994 | |
1994 | I've Got the World on a String | Timeless | 1994 | |
1995 | Du Hot Club de Concord | Concord Jazz | 1995 | |
1996 | The Return of the Great Guitars | Concord Jazz | 1996 | Co-led with Herb Ellis, Mundell Lowe |
1997 | Au Courant | Concord Jazz | 1998 | |
1999 | My Inspiration | Concord | 1999 | |
2000 | For Louis | Concord | 2000 |
As sideman
With Woody Herman
- Bamba Samba Bossa Nova (Everest, 1958)
- Woody Herman Sextet at the Roundtable (Roulette, Forum, 1959)
With Buck Clayton and Tommy Gwaltney's Kansas City 9
- Goin' to Kansas City (Riverside, 1960)
With Helen Merrill
With Joe Glazer
- Garbage and Other Songs of Our Times (Collector, 1971)
With Malcolm Boyd
- Are You Running with Me, Jesus? (Columbia, 1965)
- Happening: Prayers for Now (Columbia, 1965)
References
- ^ Hurwitz, Tobias. "Fly Away Home". Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved June 7, 2007.
- ^ Salon.com. "Jazz guitarist Charlie Byrd dies at 74". Archived from the original on October 8, 2008. Retrieved 2007-06-07.
- ^ norfolk.gov. "Charlie Byrd:Legends of Music". Archived from the original on June 12, 2007. Retrieved June 7, 2007.
- ^ Price, Suzi. "Legendary Bassist, Keter Betts". Archived from the original on July 2, 2007. Retrieved June 7, 2007.
- ^ ISBN 0-87930-729-3.
- ISBN 0-19-512101-5.
- ^ Offbeat Records catalog accessed October 31, 2012
- ^ Theater program from the production
- ISBN 0-87930-656-4.
- ISBN 0-664-22373-7.
- ^ Holley, Joe. "James Goding; Lawyer in Royalties Case". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 7, 2007.
- ^ ISBN 0-87930-619-X.
- ISBN 0-8032-4250-6.
- ^ Fabricant, Florence (July 8, 1992). "Jazz Makers Swing From Ham Hocks To Health Food". The New York Times. Retrieved June 6, 2007.
- ^ "Ginny Byrd | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved June 12, 2023.
- ^ a b "Jazz Musician Charlie Byrd Dies (washingtonpost.com)". www.washingtonpost.com. Retrieved June 12, 2023.
- ^ "Jazz legend Byrd dies". BBC News. December 3, 1999. Retrieved June 7, 2007.